Factors and perceptions associated with energy drink consumption among undergraduate students attending a rural university: a descriptive study.

Gandhi, Subi; Hinson, Katrina; Gandhi, Viraj; Sharma, Sushma

Objectives: This study examined the prevalence, patterns, and knowledge of Energy Drink (ED) consumption among undergraduate students. Participants: Participants included students (n = 373) attending a medium-sized rural university in Texas. Methods: Students were surveyed anonymously using convenience sampling and a cross-sectional design with 15 items structured questionnaire. Results: Nearly 90% of the study participants (N = 373) were between 18-24 years. Among the consumers (n = 165), the majority were females (80%) and Caucasian (73%). About 60% of them lived on campus, 22% were engaged in some type of sports activity, and primarily represented the freshmen (42%) and sophomore (25%) population. Having apriori knowledge of the negative health effects of EDs was associated with their consumption [OR: 0.40, CI: (0.22, 0.72)]. Conclusions: Our findings highlight the need to establish programs and policies on campus to address ED consumption issues and create educational campaigns to inform the undergraduate population attending a rural university.

TEXAS; CROSS-sectional method; CAFFEINE; HEALTH literacy; DRINKING (Physiology); RESEARCH funding; SPORTS; HEALTH attitudes; HEALTH status indicators; UNDERGRADUATES; UNIVERSITIES & colleges; HEALTH occupations students; STATISTICAL sampling; QUESTIONNAIRES; DISEASE prevalence; DESCRIPTIVE statistics; ODDS ratio; RURAL conditions; RESEARCH methodology; STUDENT attitudes; HEALTH promotion; HEALTH education; CONFIDENCE intervals; ENERGY drinks; DRINKING behavior; PHYSICAL activity

Journal of American College Health, 2024, Vol 72, Issue 9, p3449

0744-8481

Academic Journal

10.1080/07448481.2022.2164719